When it comes to making beer, co-founder of My Local Brew Works Wayne Humphrey believes that smaller and hands-on is better. On a recent Friday afternoon, my friends and I headed to the Globe Dye Works building in Philadelphia which houses MLBW and other artists and makers. We were there to create our own custom craft brew, enjoy lunch, taste different beers and learn all about the beer making process from this team of passionate brewers.
Sampling the signature brews is part of the fun at My Local Brew Works in Philadelphia. Silicone Mould For Concrete
My Local Brew Works began when two local home brewers Wayne Humphrey and Tim Montague teamed up with brewing mentor and grain master George Hummel. Their aim is to produce traditional European style and American craft style beers using tried-and-true flavor combinations. They bring the unique experience of brewing a custom craft beer to everyone from corporate teams to bridal parties, letting you get in on everything from the style selection to the actual brewing process.
After a pre-brew consultation during which we decided on the type of beer we wanted to brew (we decided on Brighton Breeze, a British style golden ale) we arrived on site to get started. Humphrey took us on a tour of the facility and gave us the rules for the day — no stepping across the green lines on the floor without permission as things get hot, taste all the beers ask all the questions and most of all have fun.
Make a custom craft brew with friends or co-workers.
When you make a custom craft brew, you can either have the MLBW team make it for you or come on site to get hands-on in the process as we did. Each of us had a chance to add the selected grains and hops to the water while Montague and Hummel oversaw the whole process, timing everything down to the minute and getting the temperatures just right.
During the brew process, we got to taste a variety of MLBW’s signature beers including the Philly Phinger (a Kolsch hybrid beer), a pale ale created specifically for Bolo, a local Latin American restaurant and even mead. Lunch was served, brought in from Middle Child Clubhouse. During all of this, Humphrey regaled us with information about everything from grain and hop selection to the local restaurants they’ve collaborated with and the custom labels they’ve created for weddings (one with a peach pit theme was particularly cool). There was even a custom batch in the fermenter that will be served at a customer’s daughter’s bat mitzvah.
MLBW co-founder Wayne Humphrey lets guests get hands on in the brewing process.
As our beer cooled and was transferred to the fermenter, we wrapped up our afternoon with a celebratory toast and left with custom MLBW swag.
The experience at MLBW was so fun and informative, I’d highly recommend it as a team building excursion, a bachelor or bachelorette party or just as a fun day out with friends. While you could have the team create your custom brew without getting hands on, being there and participating in the brewing process was half the fun (the other half was getting to try all the beer samples!). In about four weeks, the fun will continue when our custom brew will be ready for consumption.
You can create a custom label for your beer to use for weddings, corporate events or parties.
Rubber And Silicone My Local Brew Works is located at 4500 Worth Street in Philadelphia. Pricing varies based on a number of factors including volume of beer brewed, fermentation time, and ingredients, but starts at $120 per person and includes a full brew day, beer tastings, food and a parting gift. Those interested in learning more about the custom brewing process and to reserve a brew day with My Local Brew Works may do so by emailing beer@mylocalbrewworks.com.